Real Money

DaVita
Clinical Research
® (DCR
®), a specialty
contract research organization with services spanning the full spectrum
of drug and device development, announced today a non-exclusive
agreement with...

DaVita Clinical Research® (DCR ®), a specialty contract research organization with services spanning the full spectrum of drug and device development, announced today a non-exclusive agreement with Pacific Pharma Group, LLC, to provide consulting, program strategy and protocol design support for clinical pharmacology studies performed at DCR.

Jon Ruckle, M.D., CPI, principal at Pacific Pharma Group, will collaborate with DCR to continue to expand DCR’s Phase I research capabilities. Dr. Ruckle has served as investigator for more than 350 studies across multiple therapeutic areas including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hypertension and osteoporosis, as well as first-in-human trials with biologics and small molecules.

“We are excited to enter into this consulting relationship with Pacific Pharma Group and to extend our scientific team to include the experience of Dr. Ruckle,” said Chad Jaeger, vice president of early clinical research at DCR. “Our intense focus on patient safety and scientific integrity in complex clinical pharmacology services aligns well with this collaboration and the needs of our customers.”

In addition to serving as principal at Pacific Pharma Group, Dr. Ruckle is currently assistant clinical professor at the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawaii in Honolulu. Previously, he held medical director positions at Comprehensive Clinical Development, Inc., Covance Clinical Research Unit and Radiant Research Unit Honolulu. He was medical director and co-founder of Northwest Kinetics, Inc., and has authored more than 30 medical publications.

“State-of-the-art, hospital-based Phase I facilities offering access to both patient and healthy normal populations are of great interest to pharmaceutical researchers,” said Dr. Ruckle. “Through our relationship with DCR, Pacific Pharma Group will be able to offer clients access to these valuable services.”

Dr. Ruckle completed his medical degree at the Loma Linda University Medical School in Loma Linda, Calif., and his internal medicine residency training at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. Dr. Ruckle is board certified in Internal Medicine and is a Certified Physician Investigator through the Academy of Pharmaceutical Physicians and Investigators.